Search

March 18, 2018

Brexit also means Bre(EEA)xit

Professor Christophe Hillion, from the Centre for European Law at Oslo University, will tell MSPs on Tuesday how the "halfway house" option of single market access without EU membership works for Norway. He will also outline an overlooked aspect of Brexit – its impact on the three EFTA members who are part of the single market via the EEA agreement. Hillion – an expert on EU external relations -- will argue there is no option for a Brexiting UK to remain in the EEA because “Brexit means Br(EEA)xit.” The Nordic Horizons speaker will also suggest solidarity within the EU has been bolstered rather than weakened by the Brexit process; “There have been few signs of fragmentation in the EU following the UK’s activation of Article 50 TEU. On the contrary, thus far, the withdrawal process has shown some integration-friendly features.” Nordic Horizons Director and McSmorgasbord co-editor Lesley Riddoch will be chairing the event.

She said; “The impact of Brexit on small nations with indirect single market access has been ignored so far. As one of Europe’s leading legal experts in the structures of the European Union we hope Christophe will rectify that and describe how access to the single market via the EEA “halfway house” works in Norway - the pros and the cons. It’s an option the Scottish Government is also considering as it tries to plan Scotland’s post-Brexit future.”

Sponsoring MSP Ivan McKee said; "I'm delighted to be hosting Nordic Horizons' timely debate. There's so much we can learn from other small, successful countries - and important to know there are options other than hard Brexit". The event is full with a waiting list. Accredited journalists, MSPs and Holyrood staff are very welcome to attend but the talk will also be live-streamed via this link which will be live from 7pm on Tuesday night. (Note later starting time because of likely late-running of parliament) https://www.youtube.com/c/DemocracytvScot/live

Notes;

Nordic Horizons is a policy group founded in 2010 to increase understanding of Nordic life and policy options in Scotland and facilitate connections between Scots and Nordic individuals and interest groups. NH has brought more than 40 policy specialists from the five Nordic countries, (plus the Faroes and Greenland) to speak in public events and brief Scottish civil servants and local government leaders. NH receives funding from the Scottish Government to cover the travel and accommodation expenses of these speakers.

Christophe Hillion is also a researcher at the Swedish Institute for European Policy Studies (SIEPS) in Stockholm and at the Centre for European Law at Oslo University and has advised the Swedish, UK and Ukrainian governments and the European Parliament, Commission, and Council of Europe.

He will brief Scottish civil servants on legal and practical aspects of EEA membership before his talk in the Scottish Parliament.

March 08, 2018

The day after I write another lengthy catch-up piece about evictions, removals and terminated leases in rural Scotland, (including Balavil pictured above) there are two big hopeful announcements. Scottish Housing Minister Kevin Stewart has announced that Scotland is to introduce a housing first model for homeless people with the most "complex needs". This will see them moved into permanent rather than temporary accommodation straight away. Mr Stewart said that meeting the Government’s ambition to “end homelessness in Scotland” would need the help of councils and housing associations to provide permanent accommodation, and urged them to ensure that Government funding of £3bn to build 50,000 homes within this parliamentary term did not ignore such accommodation, saying it was up to local authorities and associations to “get their allocations policy right.” That's very welcome. So is the announcement from Lochalsh and Skye Housing Association to build 200 new houses by 2023. Forty four of the properties are already under construction or being purchased and a further seventy houses and flats will start on site during 2018. The anticipated cost of the development programme is in the region of £25 million.The priority is "new affordable rented homes for those in priority need including those affected by overcrowding, damp, temporary and poorly repaired properties"

Great news. But meanwhile more folk all over Scotland are being forced out of homes because of the weakness of tenancy agreements for homes and farms. Cant we tackle that? Folk cant get homes nearby because there is no land and it's unaffordable for most public and affordable private builders in any case. Behind all this homelessness and people living in foul, damp conditions with high rents is a land shortage that so far has not been tackled by land reform. Here's this week's column;

That’s all from us. Now it’s time for the snow where you are.The snow where you are does not come after the news where we are. Because if there is no snow where we are then there is no snow where you are. The snow where we are is the snow. It comes first. The snow where you are is the snow where you are. It does not cause serious problems because we do not have the snow where you are.The snow where you are may be snow to you but it is not snow to us.The snow where we are may be the Beast from the East, Snowmageddon or A Red Alert. The snow where we are is serious snow. The snow where you are is not serious snow. Where you are is not serious. The snow where you are is not serious or official snow.If the snow where you are is serious snow it is only serious where you are.The snow where we are is serious wherever you are.

Background As delegates from the Nordic, Arctic and beyond arrive for the Arctic Forum in Edinburgh, guest speakers from Iceland, Norway and Greenland will discuss the opportunities and threats to the Arctic, ask if the region has the political power it needs to develop sustainably and explore Scotland’s future role as a North Atlantic nation. The discussion will be followed by an open Q & A session.

The Panel:Lesley Riddoch is a journalist and is the Director of Nordic Horizons and will Chair this event.

Jón Baldvin Hannibalsson is the ex-leader of Iceland's Social Democratic Party (SPD) and former Minister of Finance and Foreign Affairs responsible for their EEA negotiations in the 1990s. He was also first to recognise the Baltic countries as independent states.

Rune Rafaelsen was Secretary General of the Norwegian Barents Secretariat for 12 years until 2015 when he was elected Mayor of the Sør-Varanger municipality in northern Norway, Europe’s northern-most Schengen border region with Russia. Rune is an expert on oil, fishing stocks & Russian politics

Tukumminnguaq Nykjaer Olsen is a young student & campaigner from Greenland who won this year’s Arctic Innovation prize.

Andy Wightman MSP will respond to give a Scottish perspective on contributions by our Arctic speakers. Andy is Green MSP for the Lothians and sits on the Europe, Economy, Environment and Communities committees at Holyrood.

October 27, 2017

Great night in Barcelona thanks to Joyce and Nuala fae Scotland and her pal Conor -- all got in touch via twitter (positive power of social media!) I even got to borrow Nuala's ever-ready Scotalan flag. Interesting to see the way Franco thinking lives on in "modern" Spain. Country is on Central European Time even though it should be on GMT cos Franco wanted to express solidarity with Hitler's Germany in 1940. Biz must open during sunlight hours cos Franco believed in that - even though 8am - 8pm with a three hour break is knackering people. Catalonia intends to pilot 9-5 working. Spain has second greatest number of fast rail lines in Europe (or world?) - but all radiate out from Madrid and none connect other big cities like Barcelona and Valencia. As Nuala pointed out Franco wasn't defeated - he died and was effectively just replaced so his thinking lives on unchallenged in much of Madrid politics. Strong parallels with Scotland's attempts to modernise archaic topdown British democracy. Fascinating to be here at such a big moment for democracy in Spain and whole of EU.

Speaker: Katrin Oddsdóttir - member of the Constitution Council of Iceland and political activist

Respondent: Patrick Harvie - MSP, Glasgow, Green

Chair: Lesley Riddoch, writer & broadcaster

What it's all about

Iceland's Crowd Sourced Constitution was kicked into touch by politicians in 2011 -- but it's making a comeback.

Katrin Oddsdóttir was one of 25 members of the Constitution Council of Iceland, which drafted the new constitution in a process recognised worldwide for its emphasis on democratic methods and social media tools. The draft constitution contains clauses on environmental protection, highlights international human rights law and the rights of refugees and migrants, and proposes a redistribution of Iceland’s natural resources – notably fishing.

Katrín Oddsdóttir has been a political activist from early age, but became well known in Iceland after delivering a radical political speech at mass protests after the economic crash in 2009, while studying law. She currently works as a human rights lawyer at Rettur - Adalsteinsson & Partners law firm in Iceland, concentrating on the rights of refugees, disabled people and children, among other related fields. She has an MA in Human Rights from the University of London and a BA in law from Reykjavik University. Oddsdóttir has a BA in journalism from Dublin City University and has worked as a journalist and copy writer.

Could Iceland provide a model for Scotland?

The event will be followed by drinks and an opportunity to get some food in No1 High Street pub, beside the Storytelling Centre. Supported by the Scottish Government

October 02, 2017

I wonder if Nick Robinson got his Catalan Referendum news from the BBC or from "guerrilla" online sources yesterday? I further wonder if Nick knows Scotland already functions without university tuition fees -- unlikely if he watched only BBC Network News. Aunty's coverage of politics is still hopelessly Westminster-centric and its coverage of the "unlawful" Catalan Referendum was Establishment oriented and behind the curve. But that's become normal for a self conscious and self absorbed BBC falling over itself to appear "neutral". Today's Scotsman column. http://www.scotsman.com/news/opinion/lesley-riddoch-bbc-is-not-bold-or-diverse-enough-1-4575294

September 29, 2017

I was sent this email response from World Duty Free regarding their staff at Stansted -- I wrote a Scotsman column about the health problems facing folk who stand for the full of their shifts after hearing one young lass at Stansted Duty Free say she had been standing for 19 hours to cover a colleague's shift and already had lower back pain. And I mentioned Stansted in this podcast. So here is their response;

"In all our stores we provide perch stools at our till poins to allow staff to sit when necessary. These are not necessarily visible to customers as not all of our staff use them all of the time, but they are available in a side office for whenever they are required. We also have rubber matting behind all the till points, which is designed to make standing easier on individuals’ feet and backs. Staff are regularly rotated to ensure they have frequent breaks in line with the current Working Time Regulations. At no point would we allow an individual to work a 19 hour shift as this is against working time regulations. We do have a mixture of World Duty Free and agency staff on our tills and the maximum shift for agency staff is 12 hours. Finally, in accordance with Regulation 25 of the Workplace Health Safety and Welfare Regulations 1999, we do also provide a staff room for our employees to use, with seating to allow them to rest."

This is fine -- but I didn't see a single person with a perch stool in Stansted Duty Free when I was there three times last weekend.